site.btaSlavcheto Gathering To Celebrate Cross-Border Friendship and Tradition

The traditional cross-border Slavcheto gathering will take place on June 28 in the Slavche locality by the village of Izvor near Bosilegrad, right on the border line between Serbia and Bulgaria, organizers from Bosilegrad Municipality and Treklyano Municipality said on Wednesday.

Held for decades, the event brings Bulgarians from both sides of the border together as a long-standing symbol of friendship and preserved ties despite the frontier.

This year’s edition, hosted by Bosilegrad Municipality, opens with a flag-raising ceremony and the national anthems of the Republic of Bulgaria and the Republic of Serbia. The border checkpoint at the gathering site will be open for free passage during the day. Local mayors from both Bosilegrad and Treklyano are expected to welcome guests before a cultural programme featuring performers from Bosilegrad and Kyustendil begins.

Visitors will have a chance to sample traditional cuisine and buy a variety of local products from stalls set out along the border. Organizers expect the event to draw not only residents from Bosilegrad, Treklyano and Kyustendil, but also numerous visitors and Bulgarian and Serbian emigrants from further afield.

During the communist era, Slavcheto was the region’s most anticipated gathering—a rare moment for families and friends, separated by the border, to embrace and exchange heartfelt words. For many, the event remains a bittersweet symbol: joy and togetherness tempered by memories of years spent apart, punctuated by surveillance and interrogations from police on both sides.

Revived in 2005 after a 15-year hiatus following Bulgaria’s democratic changes, the gathering carries a quieter mood nowadays. Yet Slavcheto still stands as a living bridge across the border—a reminder that even when history divides, tradition and shared memory continue to unite communities.